Grantmaking Overview

The Catholic Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public charity, distributes grants only to qualified public entities or 501(c)(3) charities, and neither lends nor grants money to individuals or political organizations. Awards from the Foundation's unrestricted Philanthropy Fund are designated specifically to help meet the needs of the people of the Diocese of Dallas, and are made in one of three categories – Educational, Charitable, or Religious.

An organization receiving a grant may not submit another grant request until 3 grant cycles have passed since approval of their last grant request. Churches and Schools will be treated as separate organizations. Organizations with an open grant may not apply until the grant has been completed, fully funded and the Final Report submitted to the Foundation. Grant requests up to $100,000 will be considered.

(Applications for Tuition Assistance accepted for the Spring cycles only.)

(Grants made from Donor Advised and Designated Funds, while similarly restricted to qualifying 501(c)(3) charities, are not restricted to Diocesan organizations, but can be distributed to fulfill any philanthropic purpose the donor envisions. For more information, see Grantmaking from Donor Advised Funds.)

Grants from The Catholic Foundation are awarded on the basis of one or more of the following conditions:

Foundation support would be vital to the proposed project's success

A collaborative network exists that multiplies the impact of the grant

The proposed project is likely to continue and expand after the grant period, becoming self-supporting

The proposal is innovative and efficient in its use of funds

Expenses are reduced by sharing resources with other agencies or groups

The project is a well-planned approach to solving a problem and delivering services

The project promotes better human relationships and a sense of community

The project helps fulfill the mission of the applicant organization

The project will be funded within one year of the grant (unless Grant Contract specifies otherwise)

Grants from The Catholic Foundation are NOT made to or for purposes of:

Annual fund-raising events or drives

Organizations not supported or endorsed by the Catholic Church or not serving an identifiable Catholic population

Funding more than one year of a program's cost

Endowments, Individuals, or Political Organization

Operating costs, unless related to a new initiative or program

Tuition Assistance (generally made only from Restricted Funds, if available)

Elements of the Application include: A project description, project cost, signatures of the church pastor, school principal, or agency head; a narrative description of the organization, a specific funding request, the budget for the project, including bids and proposals; and a list of all sources of income for the project. The grant application will also include the organization's most recent financial report, current operating budget, list of board of directors or parish finance council, a copy of the most recent IRS letter, and, in some instances, two competitive bids or proposals for purchases of computer or other major equipment.

Applications are processed two times a year — Thursday, January 18th and Thursday, August 15th 2019 — but may be submitted at any time. (Applications for Tuition Assistance are accepted for the Spring cycles only.) Applications must be completed in accordance with the form below, and submitted with all required attachments. They can be submitted online below or mailed to our office. Applicants are asked not to contact Foundation trustees about their application. If you have questions about the grant application process, please contact the Grants Department of The Catholic Foundation at 972.331.1641 or by email at info@catholicfoundation.com.

NOTE: Please make sure that the files that you upload do NOT include special characters like +, &, %, $, #. Only grant application file names containing numbers, letters and spaces are acceptable for file uploads.

Download the 2018 Grant Application and Guidelines document

In an effort to reduce an excess of printed copies of grant submissions and as part of The Foundation's sustainability practice, all grant applications can now be submitted here online.

We ask that you complete the grant application form available for download above and submit a saved copy via the upload section below. Additional supporting documents outlined in the application checklist can be uploaded below as well.

Please make sure you have all of your supporting documentation ready prior to starting the upload process. This is a timed session and must be completed within 30 minutes to ensure proper submission.

NOTE: Please make sure that the files that you upload do NOT include special characters like +, &, %, $, #. Only grant application file names containing numbers, letters and spaces are acceptable for file uploads.